The present invention relates to a method of connecting an external device to an information terminal apparatus that has an electronic power supply in the form of a battery which can be attached to and removed from the body of the information terminal apparatus.
So far, as shown in xe2x80x9cLatest personal computer technique system ""95xe2x80x9d, the NIKKEI BYTE, page 13-19, an information processor is connected to an external device through a system bus and a variety of I/F controllers from the CPU of the body. In the desk top type of information processor, a connection of an external device by way of various interfaces was dealt with by adding an interface substrate on the system bus. On the other hand, in case of a notebook PC, etc., a controller and a connector for various interfaces were installed in the body in advance, and the connector and a peripheral device were connected to each other.
If it became necessary to add an interface to a notebook PC, in the prior art, it was necessary to replace the body. And, for a user not using the connector already attached to the body of the equipment, the space occupied by that connector was essentially wasted space, and so a large scale of the body equipment was induced, and significant labor was necessary at the time of movement of the equipment. In addition, for small information device that is used at another destination, further installation of an interface was impossible.
In the information processor of the present invention, by holding part of an additional interface in the power module and making a connection to an external device through the power module, the equipment body can be lightweight and miniaturized. And, if installation of another interface is necessary, the further installation can be realized merely by changing the power module.